Welcome to The Grand Line Academy!
by Nimphy-Ryuu-chan
Summary: AU: The Grand Line is the section of the Blue Academy dedicated to the... troubled kids. Yeah, right. More like possible criminals with serious mental issues and severe cases of pyromania.
1. The Grand Line Academy

**Heyoooo, mina-saaaaan! Ryuu-chan here! Yeah, yeah, I know: stop writing new stories update the old ones, right? Well, "The meaning of 'nakama'" is currently on hiatus (writer's block, UGH), so I started this one! It's sort-of-a-modern AU. For other notes, check the author's note in the end... meanwhile, ENJOY!**

**Disclaimer: Do I look like I own One Piece to ya? 'Cause to me it looks like I don't.**

**EDIT: This chappie has now been beta-read by Blueh! Aww :3**

**EDIT 2: By Blueh AND Callie982! Double AWWW! :3**

* * *

Zoro groaned as the bell rang. What did he ever do to deserve this? Okay, so maybe he got into a fight (or two) and he sent a lot of people to the infirmary, but it couldn't be enough to deserve _this_!

"Good luck." Koshiro smiled as he patted the young man's shoulder, the latter giving him a desperate and pleading look before heading for the entrance.

Grand Line Academy. Also commonly known as Hell.

_"What is this?! You! Come to my office, now!"_

Well, it hadn't been _his_ fault that that coward had insulted him, but the principal of the East Blue Academy obviously didn't share the same opinion. So now he was being sent to the Grand Line.

The Blue Academy was essentially divided into four distinct parts: East Blue, West Blue, North Blue, and South Blue. Being the only school in the entire city, it needed more than one building to house all the students. Then there was the Grand Line.

'School for troubled children', as they defined it, but that wasn't the right definition. More like potential criminals with heavy mental issues. Did Zoro _look_ like a potential criminal with heavy mental issues?

Okay, okay, having green hair and earrings didn't help his image. Nor did black clothes, spiked bracelets, and the three katanas strapped to his belt. But he certainly didn't deserve to be sent into the 'troubled' section of the school. It's not like he had killed people, for gods sake!

He felt something touching his shoulder and quickly spun around, hand instinctively reaching for his Wado Ichimonji, only to be faced with three of the most bizarre-looking men he had ever seen.

A raven-haired teen was snickering, hand over the freckled face to try and contain his laugh. Another young man with pompadour-styled ginger hair was instead holding his stomach and laughing openly. The third one was as bizarre in aspect – half of his head shaved with only the only tuft of blond hair arranged in a style resembling a banana peel on top of his head – but was far more serious than the other two.

"Hey, kid, you don't want to be late for class, yoi. You lost?" Ignoring the fact that the three of them were just as late as him, Zoro acknowledged that it would be better to hurry up. He pulled out the small paper sheet of indications someone had given him, staring at it in confusion before having it snatched by the black-haired boy.

"The Going Merry?! Isn't that the test class?" he exclaimed, looking wide-eyed at the paper.

"Yeah. What did you do, kid?" His ginger-haired friend asked. Zoro didn't reply, instead giving a look of confusion at his paper. The Going Merry?

"They didn't tell you, did they, yoi? Well… I suppose we'll have to do that. Grand Line classes are divided into two main categories. The one that interests you is 'Paradise', you, the one for those who have showed no risk of…" He gave the raven-haired boy a glare "…setting the school on fire or anything similar, yoi." Zoro couldn't help but stare at the raven. Setting the school on fire?

"The Going Merry is a test class," the blonde continued. "That means the newbies are sent there, then after a week or so the less dangerous students will be sent to Marine classes. Good luck, yoi."

Zoro nodded, snatching his paper back from the raven-haired boy and left without a word, staring at the incomprehensible map that gave him wrong directions.

_What kind of map would lead him into a wall?_

* * *

The door sprang open as the swordsman rushed in, panting heavily. Everyone's eyes went to him, and he scowled at the map for what felt like the millionth time that day.

The teacher adjusted his glasses with his palm and turned to the newcomer.

"I believe you are Roronoa Zoro, correct? You're late. Take a seat." He motioned toward an empty seat.

In an empty classroom, it appeared. Only three people were in there, although all three of them as eccentric looking as everyone else he'd seen so far.

Zoro frowned, carefully studying his choices, then sat besides a wide-grinning teenager who looked somewhat younger than him, wearing a red T-shirt, blue jeans and… a straw hat? He raised an eyebrow at his weird choice of style, but didn't say anything. Not when he was the one with green hair and—

"Hey, you teacher! He has swords!" A different male yelled, pointing at his katanas. Zoro stared at him, at his short blond hair and cleft chin, vaguely thinking he must have been some rich spoiled kid.

"Klahadore-sensei," the man corrected, before adjusting the glasses again in his own strange way and turning to the swordsman.

"Your katanas, please." The teacher stretched a hand, waiting for Zoro to give him his katanas.

Give him his katanas? What kind of stupid person must have he been to request him to give up his katanas? A swordsman should _never_ leave his weapons in the hands of others.

After waiting for a couple of minutes, hand outstretched, and being met only with the defiant stare of the boy, Klahadore seemingly lost his patience and grabbed the three of them. Zoro narrowed his eyes, but forced himself to stay put and not react. He wanted to get out of this hell, and assaulting the teacher (as weak as he looked) was not the best way of proving himself that he was not a fire-setting psycho. Besides, he'd get his swords back later.

With that thought in mind, he stared blankly at the wall as the teacher explained something he didn't bother listening to.

"Hello!" The black-haired boy greeted, finally speaking after the interminable introduction lesson. Zoro looked at him, causing the already large grin to become even wider, almost at an inhuman level. "I'm Monkey D. Luffy!" The swordsman raised a brow at the kid, wondering what must such a cheerful boy have done to be sent to the Grand Line Academy. Probably something terrible.

"Let's go for lunch! I hope they have meat today, I'm so hungry~" He continued blabbering like that, and Zoro couldn't help but snort at his enthusiasm. Maybe not the students here were pyromaniacs, after all.

They arrived at the cafeteria (after getting lost once or twice), and something got their attention.

"You hear me? Do you even know who I am, brat!?" Zoro turned to see a bulky man, with metal plates implanted into his jaw and right hand, yelling at a cowering boy. He recognized the latter to be the third student at class, a small kid with pink hair and large, round blue glasses.

"I-I'm s-sorry, I d-d-didn't mean t-to spill my d-drink o-on y-you..." the pink-haired boy stuttered out.

"Don't lie to me! Do you know who I am? I'm a Marine officer, kid! And I have the full authority to beat the shit out of you to make you behave!" he yelled, raising his metal hand.

In the blink of an eye, Zoro jumped at him. Katana or no katana, arrogant bastards who abused their positions got on his nerves, but before he could land a single hit, the blond man was sent flying into a wall.

His eyes widened at Luffy, staring in awe as the scrawny, seemingly weak boy prepared to punch the man again. It wasn't so hard to figure why he had been sent in here after seeing that first attack.

Well, they had time to kill anyways. Better give a lesson to the bastard

* * *

**Now, did you like it? Feel free to ask about anything you didn't understand, by either reviewing or PM-ing me, I'll answer as best as I can :3 **

**This story won't exactly have a plot. It will just follow the Strawhats and their adventures in the Grand Line Academy, which will be loosely based on the series. Very loosely, though, most parts will be original, and I will omit parts I don't like or deem unnecessary. Now, thank you for reading and don't forget to review! X3**


	2. Our new home

**Disclaimers: I clearly don't own One Piece, because I have the artistic talent of a ten-year-old. Also, I don't own the image I'm using as cover, and I have no jokes to use on this one. If the owner wants it removed, just say so and I will do. I think it pretty much captured the spirit of the story, so yeah, here it is :)**

* * *

Neither Luffy, nor Zoro could believe such a weak bastard dared threaten other students. You'd expect bullies to be somewhat strong... this one, though, was almost laughable.

Both of them hit him in perfect synchrony, sending him flying before he could even get to his feet, like they had been fighting together since forever. They continued until he didn't move anymore, having possibly lost consciusness.

Someone in the sall crowd that had gathered started laughing out loud, and for some reason Zoro wasn't surprised when the raven-haired-fire-setting guy he had met in the morning came out and put his arm around Luffy's shoulders. A blond boy, far more serious but still smirking slightly, followed. He was dressed far more formally than the other students (given that most of them weren't even wearing their shirts) wearing some sort of scholastic uniform... even though the school didn't have a uniform. And a top hat. A top hat. A straw hat. A cowboy hat. What was with this school and hats?!

"Seriously, Luffy. Don't you think you were too harsh on him?" The blond asked, poking the unconscious man with a pipe he was carrying.

Luffy just grinned. "He was being mean with Coby." he explained, and it was all it took to get both of the older students smiling fondly.

"You just signed your fate... both of you!" the beaten man yelled, regaining his senses and scrambling away from his assaulters. Luffy pouted, as if he said something incredibly stupid, and someone chuckled at the clichè-ness of the statement.

"Just shut up!" Luffy said, causing the man to pale and do as told, and both of the older males who recently came out to smirk, amused.

"Luffy... you'll be sent to the New World, if you go on like this..." Top-hat whispered, but didn't seem very worried. Raven-pyro just snickered again. "You still have a long way to go, lil' brother." Innocuous Luffy was those two's little brother? Well, seeing him fight, it wasn't all that surprising, actually.

"What happened here?" someone asked, making his way across the crowd and widening his eyes when he noticed the beaten man. "You four! Did you do this?" he asked, pointing at the quartet of boys.

Raven-pyro and top-hat looked at each other before chuckling in unison - "Better run!" - and running off into the crowd before the man could chase them. He instead turned to Luffy and Zoro, both of whom could almost see smoke coming out of his ears.

"You two!" he yelled, pointing at them. "Newcomers! Come with me! And you, too!" he added, pointing at the small pink-haired boy who must have been Coby. He started to tremble, his glasses askew and balanced on the tip of his nose.

"E-e-eh? M-m-me? B-but I-I didn't do anything, I-I-I swear!" he stuttered, weakly trying to defend himself.

"Shut up and follow me!" the older man replied, quickly dispatching the crowd and making his way towards a small office, where more people dressed in blue and white were sitting. Coby's expression for a moment changed to one of admiration, before going back to the terrorized one it was before.

"What happened?" someone asked.

"Captain Morgan was beaten by these three!" the man's reply received in response joyful expressions, which quite confused the three of them. Coby, though, seemed to particularly pay attention to the words, and was soon panicking again.

"N-n-no! I-I-I swear I d-d-didn't d-do a-anything!" he stuttered, nervously trying to defend himself.

"What does it mean, you didn't do anything? Are you not with these two?" someone asked. Coby's face flushed red.

"I-I'm not! I want... I want to become a Marine!" he declared, immediately covering his mouth with both his hands afterwards. Chuckles between the amused and the derisory broke out among the Marines.

"A small fish like you? And even worse, caught in a fight scene?"

"Yeah, even if you were innocent, being caught with these two won't do you any good. Call it bad luck, mate, but we have no proof you weren't involved in the accident... even if it was a good deed, it's still against the rules."

"B-b-but..."

"Shut up." This time it wasn't a Marine talking, but Luffy.

"I know all about this guy. He purposely provoked th- oomph!" The air rushed out of the teen's lungs when Coby punched him with a shaking fist.

"It's not true! I'm innocent!" he yelled, eyes shut close as he prepared for the probable hit to come.

Nothing came, though, and Coby slowly opened his eyes to notice the Marines staring at him curiously.

"Well, it seems you're not his friend or anything." someone concluded.

"Yeah. Those two are certainly guilty, though."

Neither of the two flinched, their silence a confirmation itself.

"Who are they?"

"They're Monkey D. Luffy and Roronoa Zoro from the Going Merry test class. This guy is, too... Coby." a Marine explained, holding a file of documents and looking them through.

"Then it's settled, no punishment for them, this time. The first act is forgiven, right?"

"Yeah. But they'll remain in the Going Merry."

Oh, well. It wouldn't be such a pain, after all... 

* * *

"Hey, Zoro, come check this out!" Luffy yelled, motioning for the other to come. He did, curious, and raised an eyebrow as Luffy showed him a butterfly in his palm.

"It's beautiful, isn't it?" A second voice could be heard, in unison with Luffy's. They both turned to face Luffy's brothers coming towards them. Raven-pyro was the one who had spoken, the other limiting himself to a soft smile.

"You're still alive? They didn't lock you up, break a couple o' bones, torture you with scorching iron sticks?" The raven asked, and Zoro hoped he was sarcastic. The keyword here being 'hoped'.

"Hey, Zoro, these are my big brothers! They're Ace and Sabo." Luffy smiled, motioning first at the raven, then at the blond. Zoro nodded once to greet, Ace waved, while Sabo bowed slightly, tipping his hat.

"Ace! You coming or what?" ginger-hair from that morning called, waving in the distance. Ace excused himself and ran towards him, while Sabo muttered something about bad manners.

"Then, Luffy, I must go, too. I'm expected to attend a meeting soon, and it wouldn't be nice of me to be late." he said, calmly walking off.

"Oh, no! The butterfly flew away." Luffy complained, already forgotten about his brothers. 

* * *

"'Going Merry', here it is! Wonder what's it look like inside~!" Luffy yelled, throwing the door open with such force that Zoro was suprised it didn't come off it hinges.

The inside was relatively big, for two people, but he figured more would join in the future. Both Coby and the other kid were sent in a Marine training section, so for the moment they were completely alone.

The main room was a dormitory, several bunk beds leaning against the wall. There were two doors, one leading to another room, possibly for girls, the other leading to a small bathroom. Everything on themes of white and beige, and decorated with wooden ram heads. *Why did it have to be a ram's head?* It was the same smiling head that welcomed them in class.

"Cool! It's a sheep!" Luffy yelled, rolling happily on the floor. Zoro smiled softly at his roommate's enthusiasm.

Maybe it wouldn't be _that_ bad here, after all.

* * *

**Doneeee! So, what did you think of it? Love it, hate it, something in the middle? Sorry if this is a bit boring, I mostly used this chapter as an excuse to get Luffy and Zoro to remain in the Going Merry. Now, on to answering the reviews!**

**spoons-are-evil: Thank you for one of the longest reviews I've ever received! I liked the idea, too. You have it more or less straight, just something: the Going Merry is one of the test classes. There are other ones, but I'll expand upon that concept later in the story. The less dangerous newcomers are sent in Marine classes, the other ones remain in there, and the Going Merry becomes a regular class. And yes, if they cause enough trouble they are sent in the "New World" section. Of the characters we met so far, Ace, Sabo, Marco and Thatch are New World students. As the story progresses we'll meet the other Strawhats. Feel free to theorize as to their reasons for being sent in the Grand Line, though, it would make me happy :)**

**Oxenstierna D. Yuki-Rin: argh, your nickname is hard to write! Thanks for the review! Yes, it's a bit... different than most regular high school AUs, but I felt like it was a story I must write (possibly due to the other ones being mostly love stories...) **

**StarPurpleandBlue: Here's your next chapter! I'm pretty curious about their adventures, too, as I don't have all the plot in mind - only bits and pieces. Ja na! **

**To my guest reviewer known as "Guest": thank you for having an easy name to write! And here it is, you hopes are satisfied, I'm continuing this!**

**To the other guest reviewer, this one known as "LookImReviewing": thank you, thank you, thank you for also checking on TMoN! Is one day soon enough? Also, what did you mean by "uh, that is read"? (I really can't wait to see- uh, that is read- the two beat up the bully)**

**AnimeSpartan: As I explained, Ace and Luffy are brothers, and Sabo is their brother, too. In this fic they're blood brothers, though, instead of sworn ones. Here's your next chapter!**

**Thank you all, you're amazing! Review again, please? **

**Wow, I got TWO STORIES updated today... and with long chapters, too! This one was 2000 words long (I suppose 1400 or so without the author's comments)! I might as well take a pause for a week... nah, I won't x3**


	3. The thief, the mission and the aftermath

**Wow, this is my absolutely most popular story so far! I'm having a lot of fun writing it, and there are a lot of people reading it! Honestly, guys, you favorites and follows put a smile to my face, and your reviews make me want to jump so high my head would hit the ceiling... **

**Disclaimers: I don't own One Piece, nor the image used as cover, should the owner want it removed, blah, blah, you know the drill.**

**Now enjoy and... meet Nami!**

* * *

Nami sighed and bit her lip, before knocking twice.

Grand Line Academy, huh? Being transferred there was almost a relief. Almost.

"Come in." She obeyed, abandoning the nervous expression for a more confident one, and entered the classroom with large steps. A man with bright red hair and three scars crossing his left eye smiled and offered his hand, which Nami hesitantly took.

"You must be the new student. Welcome to the Grand Line. I'm Shanks."

He seemed like a nice person, Nami thought. Not like she imagined Grand Line teachers, at first.

She took place besides a raven-haired teenager with a bizarre straw hat. The only other person in the classroom was a green-haired punk, and he looked far more dangerous than the other boy.

"Well, Nami, right? We were talking about the Industrial Revolution. Could you tell us something?"

Nami nodded and rose. "The Industrial Revolution took place between the VII and the VIII century, more or less, beginning in Great Britain, then expanding to all of Western Europe and the USA. Almost every aspect of the society was changed by it, as farmers transferred to the cities to find work in the newly founded factories. The Industrial Revolution began with the invention of the steam engine by James Watt, applied to the textile industry..."

"Woah, you're very smart!" Straw hat-boy said, interrupting her presentation. Shanks just chuckled, nodding.

"Thanks, Nami, you may sit. Now, Luffy, how about _you _explain me the Second Industrial Revolution?"

Luffy's grin widened. "I don't know."

"Great, Zoro? Uhm... Zoro?" Shanks sighed, looking at the green-haired boy, who was snoring loudly. The bell rang, signaling for lunch break and waking up the punk. Luffy grabbed him and stormed out so fast Nami wasn't even sure of what she saw.

"You may want to go, before he eats the entire cafeteria." Shanks suggested, gathering his books. Nami smiled and nodded, exiting the classroom, then stopping abruptly.

"Go straight, take the second left." someone said behind her. She turned around to notice a funny-looking blond with a top hat. Did the students in this school have something for weird hats?

"Thanks." she said, following the directions, the older blond boy stopping to talk with Shanks, and was soon searching for a place to sit, food tray in hand.

"Hey! Nami~! We're here~!" a childish voice yelled, and Nami noticed Luffy waving like crazy, a huge pile of plates before him. She decided to join, and sat beside the younger teenager, listening at his endless chat. He talked like she was his friend since forever, and Nami couldn't help but smile at his enthusiasm as he talked and devoured an incredible amount of food at the same time.

Yes, maybe she could allow herself to be relieved, being in this Academy.

* * *

"Look! It's a sheep!"

"It's a _ram_, moron." she corrected his new roommate, hitting him in the head.

"Ouch! What's the difference?" Luffy held his damaged skull, a bruise already bulging. Nami sighed, not bothering to explain anything to Luffy, not after she discovered he couldn't understand the difference between flies and mosquitoes.

"Hey, girl, you wanna stay here or what?" Zoro asked. Nami raised her eyebrows, waiting for him to explain.

"You wanna become a Marine, or you're going to stay in the Merry-go?"

Nami hesitated. She already knew the difference between the two categories of students in the Grand Line, but didn't think about which she was going to be in. Maybe if she joined the Marines, they could help her, maybe they could...

No. It was too risky. Too dangerous. She couldn't involve authorities in this, not if she wanted everyone to be safe.

She shrugged. "I think I'm going to stay. I don't feel like following any rules, anyway."

Both of the males grinned.

"What were you sent here for?" Zoro continued, now seemingly curious about his new classmate.

"I... They caught me stealing from other students." She avoided mentioning the school's funds, or the teachers, or the parents coming to take their kids home.

Luffy laughed. "I got into fights! Zoro, too!" Nami couldn't really imagine Luffy getting into fights... no, she could, actually.

"Hey, you're a thief, right? Will you help me get back my katanas?" The green-haired punk asked, instinctively putting his hand on his haramaki.

Nami snored, crossing her arms. "What will you give me?"

Zoro's eye twitched. "Why do I need to pay you?"

"Because I'm a thief! I work for money. How about 5000 yen?"

"What?!" He yelled, but Nami just smiled, waiting for an agreement.

"...Alright!" he snapped. "Thief woman."

"That doesn't hurt me one bit!"

"So, we're going on a mission?" Luffy asked, eyes somehow incredibly similar to two stars.

Nami sighed: "Yes, we are."

* * *

"Cool! There are Marines guarding the hallways!" Luffy whispered, voice full of excitement. "Should I just beat them up?"

"No!" Nami protested. "I mean, who knows what would happen if we were caught..."

"Well, Ace said they'd torture us with scorching sticks, but I think he was lying." Nami held her breath for a couple of seconds, desperately wishing Luffy's brother - as she had discovered during one of Luffy's interminable monologues - was indeed the jester he appeared to be.

"Hey, did you hear anything?" one of the students patrolling the corridors asked to his companion.

"Oops." Luffy said, coming out of their hiding and instantly knocking the two of them out.

"Well, it's funnier this way!" He ignored Nami's and Zoro's livid face.

"You idiot!"

"We'll die~!"

"Shishishishishi!"

The three of them ran, unsure of what else to do, until they were in front of the Danger Room.

The Danger Room was a storage of whatever item was confiscated to the students. Given that most students were gifted thieves, the room was almost always empty, weapons, poisons and whatever other item was in there usually hidden in the dormitory.

Nami kneeled in front of the door, working with a bunch of keys her roommates had no idea where did it come from, and finally unlocking it.

Zoro practically stormed in, immediately coming out with three katanas, while Nami decided to steal a pole.

"Hey, you there!" someone yelled.

"Shit!" the swordsman cursed, grabbing the younger boy and running off, closely followed by the girl.

"This was incredibly close..." Nami whined when the door to the Going Merry dormitory was safely closed behind them.

"This was _FUN~_!" Luffy was jumping up and down, laughing like crazy.

_Yes, _ Nami thought, _definitely nice here._

* * *

**Woo-hoo! Did you like this? I wasn't very satisfied by the last bit, but oh, well... consider it a bonus. I was also planning on just saying that the next morning, Nami brought the katanas to him, but this way is about 200 words longer. That means it's 1/5 of the otherwise-entire story longer! It's a bonus for reaching 10 reviews and 15 followers, okay?**

**Yay! I can't really believe how many people are liking this story. Now, on to the reviews!**

**spoons-are-evil: Woah, that's a LONG review! I love long reviews! Yes, Sabo is in the story, and he will have a large role to play in future chapters. I also made him talk like a noble, because I noticed in other stories he's very polite, and I also love how... unpolitely polite heis in the anime. "You look like a pretty nice old witch!" XD Luffy and Zoro have that bond, yes. Now, to my favorite part, the theories! As I already PM-ed you about them, I won't be very expansive on them, to avoid spoiler risks, but I can reveal Luffy's, Ace's, Zoro's and Nami's were spot on, as you can already deduce from the story. Some of the others were incredibly close! And some were inspiring, thanks a lot, really! Also, just for fun, I will reveal Thatch's reasons involve a lobster, a knife and the school headmaster. **

**Awesome Guest: yes, I'm _so_ proud of myself for thinking of raven-pyro! And thanks x3**

**LookImReviewing: Ah, thanks for explaining. Yes, as you can see the next is Nami! She comes in play pretty simply, as will most of the other Strawhats :3  
**

**Guest: Thank you again! I'll be referencing a lot of anime things, the Merry is just one of them. Yes, we'll see all of the crew, in the future :) Here's the next chapter, did I have good luck? Only you people can tell :)**

**yukiko-hyuga-chan: Is about... three hours since your review fast enough? I think it is, isn't it? I hope I can satisfy your expectations for this story ;) Thanks a lot!**

**Yay for Shanks appearing on his birthday! It was purely a coincidence, but it happened. So happy birthday, Shanks! Also, happy birthday to Franky and Mihawk! Some of my favorite characters are getting older on this exact date :333**

**So, people, hope you liked this one! As always, reviews make me want to dance. Unfortunately I'm usually in public, so I can't... **

**See y'all next chappie! **


	4. A childish new mate

**Disclaimer: Don't own One Piece, don't own the image used as cover, don't own the computer to write this... uh, wait a minute!**

* * *

Usopp nervously bit his lip, standing in front of the beige door, ornated with a ram's head. Probably inside lurked criminals who would have made his life a true hell, with sadic tendencies and far too strong for him to handle.

Yup, he thought he was having another attack of his 'I can't go into that classroom' disease.

"Hey, kid, what are you standing there for?" a gruff voice asked, causing the boy to cower in fear before its owner, exactly the archetype of what he had imagined the students of Grand Line Academy like. Green hair, spiked bracelets, black clothes and...

He jumped in the air, eyes almost popping out at the sight of what was at the other's waist._ THREE SWORDS?!_

"Hello! I'm Monkey D. Luffy, who are you?" a childish voice asked joyfully. Usopp slowly raised his head to see a boy approximately his age smiling at him, a curious straw hat on his head. He seemed somewhat less dangerous, but Usopp wouldn't be so stupid as to trust him. Maybe he could...

He gathered up courage and smirked arrogantly, pointing a thumb at himself.

"I'm Usopp the Brave! I have 8000 followers, so you better be respectful!"

Luffy's mouth instantly formed a big 'O', his eyes gleaming, until a redhead hit him in the head. "He's lying, you idiot!"

Usopp decided the girl was the one to watch out for.

Luffy hugged his head tightly, but otherwise didn't give any reactions to the hit, instead laughing out loud. "Oh! Hahahaha! You're funny!"

Usopp was speechless, taken aback from the boy's strange reactions. Maybe he was lucky and didn't end up in a class full of future assassins?

The bell rang, and a green-haired young woman opened the door to the classroom, welcoming them with a soft smile.

"Good morning, everyone. Oh, we have a new student! I'm Makino, welcome. And you are?"

"I-I-I'm Usopp!" he stuttered nervously. Makino just chuckled in response, motioning for the four of them to come in.

* * *

"Are you eating that?" Luffy asked, pointing at his lunch tray, still intact.

"N-no..." Usopp couldn't even finish his phrase before Luffy had instantly swallowed every single bit of food.

"It's break time, come on, Luffy!" the orange-haired girl - Nami - said, motioning at the mess hall, completely empty if it wasn't for the four of them. Luffy got to his feet and stormed out so quickly they didn't even have time to react.

Nami sighed, used to Luffy's hyperactivity by now, and they went out, only to find Luffy bouncing like a rubber ball around a couple of older students.

"...you should've heard him! He screamed like a girl!"

"That's not true."

"Scaredy-cat!"

"Shall I inform Luffy of your first-day-of-school incident in the mess hall?"

"Go ahead! That was funny! Oh, hey, it's Luffy's classmates!"

"Hi, guys!" Luffy waved his arm so fast that his friends were surprised it didn't come off.

"Luffy! And who are..." Nami asked, eyeing the two strangers.

"Ace and Sabo! They're my brothers!" The two brothers bowed slightly, receiving the same greeting from the group.

"Well then, Luffy, why don't you play with your friends? Me and Sabo need to go anyway."

"Aww, but you always need to go! Stay a bit!"

"Sorry, Luffy... we really must go, now. Say, just play with your new friends, like we used to at Gray Terminal."

"Okay... hey, guys, let's play catch!"

"No way! What kind of dumb game is that?" Zoro and Nami scolded him at the same time, but Luffy wasn't discouraged one bit. He punched Zoro, chuckling, then ran away, loudly yelling something about hide-and-seek.

"That stupid kid, I'm going to kill him!" The green-haired boy unsheathed one of his swords and chased after Luffy, while Usopp smiled and went to hide for himself. Nami looked around, then sighed and sat under a tree.

She absolutely and utterly refused to get involved in that trio's strange antics... the fact that she lent a hand in scaring Makino to death earlier wasn't _certainly_ a sign of influence!

* * *

_This should be safe enough._

Usopp was hiding in a large circle of trees, brown clothes and his green slingshot, the only thing he brought from home, effectively helping him to mold with the surrounding foliage.

It wasn't like he completely trusted his new classmates yet. They'd have to be horrible people to be sent to Grand Line Academy, but he had to admit they were fun. Maybe they had been sent there for accidents, like him?

He chuckled as he heard Luffy's panicked shout, followed by Zoro's calls for him to stop running, then a loud thumping noise, which he figured meant that the younger boy had been caught. Now it probably were just him and Nami hiding...

"Hey, you! What are you doing, hiding up there! Did you combine anything?" someone shouted from below. Usopp almost fell off the tree and looked down, dangling by his overalls.

"M-m-m-me? N-no I was..."

The young man dressed in blue and white pointed a finger at him. "It looks to me like you were hiding."

"I... I was playing hide-and-seek..." he stuttered. The Marine's - because he recognized the outfit from Makino's quick explanation that morning face reddened and he raised a fist.

"Stop kidding with me! No one plays hide-and-seek at your age! If you won't tell me what've you done, I'll just beat the truth out of you!" he yelled, reaching for a sword at his hilt. Usopp widened his eyes, grabbing his slingshot and aiming at the marine. The opponent screamed when an egg hit him in the eyes, and blindly threw his sword at Usopp's general direction.

Unfortunately, the sword caught a tree branch and caused the young boy to fall down.

"You little bastard, I'll make you pay for that!" the marine threatened, wiping the remnants of the egg off of his face.

"Usopp!" a familiar voice called out, a fist hitting the adversary in the face. The marine stumbled backwards and fell on his side. The strawhat-wearing assaulter cracked his knuckles, watching the fallen man carefully, but eventually relaxed when he realized he was knocked out.

"L-luffy..."

"Is this school full of weaklings or what?!" a gruff voice appeared from behind him.

"Zoro..."

"Eeep! You two! You're going to get us in trouble, you know!"

"Nami..."

Luffy furrowed his eyebrows, leaning forward towards the trembling boy.

"Hmm? Usopp? What's wrong?"

"N-nothing... let's just go back, okay?"

"Yes! I want to play tag, now! You're it, Usopp!"

"Wha-? Hey, wait! Luffy!"

And, while chasing around a laughing strawhat-boy, being scolded by a green-haired punk who wanted to take a nap and with the sighs of a redhead girl in the background, he grinned to himself.

_"You just can't do it, right? Those three are children, Usopp! You have to hang around like normal teens do! You'll never have real friends this way! You can't just play at being pirates anymore!" _

Luffy stopped running and turned around, eyes beaming with excitement.

"Hey, Usopp! Let's play at pirates!"

* * *

**Woot! Sorry if this is a bit late, WRITER'S BLOCK. UGH.**

**Hmmm... can anyone guess what Gray Terminal is in this story? I love guesses! In fact, guess over everything, I'd love to hear them! Your ideas more often than not are much cooler than mine, anyway, and they make up for more interesting storylines! **

**Yay for cameo appearances! I think some characters are just too cool not to include, and that's why you have cameos of some characters (namely Ace, Sabo, Marco and Thatch) very often. Some of them will just be there for fun, others will have a reason, such as the WB trio in the first chapter explaining how the school works. Other short appearances will be hinting to a future plot, but I'm not gonna say which ones! It could be any of them! Just know that we will be given more time with these side characters in the future, and they will eventually get very important appearances. **

**Oh, and hey! Happy birthday, Sabo! It's March 20... oh, the irony. I'm still catching up with the OP anime and I'm at the post-war arc, so Sabo's (non)death is a pretty fresh event in my mind (spoilers. Oops.) I mean, I saw the whole of it** **_yesterday_**!** And today I saw everything 'til episode 516, and I just couldn't stop giggling excitedly, it was so COOL and CUTE and SUPEEEER (Franky-style) and many many other words! Yay, I've finally arrived to the timeskip! Yay! Yay! And more yay's!**

**I'll let also y'all know a poll's up on my profile, to determine which one is the fan-favorite story, and the one I'll *try* and update more often (try. Just try). So, if you want to read more of your favorite story, go and voooote!**

**Now, to the reviews!**

**Horizon-Dawn: you're welcome... wait a minute, it's me who should be thanking! Thanks for reviewing! Glad you liked the chappie!**

**Fruitstogether: as you can see, Usopp's next. Sanji, though, will have to wait. As the story progresses and the One Piece arcs get longer, it will take more time to introduce new characters, unfortunately. Must...resist...introducing all of them at once...**

**yukiko hyuga-chan: That was really a fast update, yup ^^ This one wasn't, though, sorry...**

**4fireking: Game of Thrones? Haven't watched that, but I'll take it as a compliment, so thanks! Yes, I'm proud of myself, and yes, I'm thinking of publishing a book! And another yes! You all can ask me all the questions you want!**

**So, see y'all next chappie, while 'We are' plays in my head! **


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